Boom! Here it is. Just like that I changed the name of Mel’s Macintosh Universe Blog into Mel’s Tech Blog. So easy to do with WordPress.

Going forward this blog will be more of a general information and commentary site covering a wider range of techie stuff. I’ll still write about Apple, Macs and other devices. However I’ll probably cover different things such as Chromebooks, Android, Google, Photography, Audio & Video plus the always evolving Internet.

With that said, I’ve made changes to this blog and more will be coming soon. I will also be changing the blog’s URL in the near future too. In fact you will be able to soon visit and bookmark the following URLs for this blog: tech.scoomba.com, and mtb.macprohawaii.com.

Once again I round up a list of ten Apple products that I did not get or wanted this past Christmas season.

As I stated last year, my enthusiasm for Apple’s line-up of products have definitely waned since the days of my Mac Plus through the years using many other Macs such as the Quicksilver G4 and iBook 400. My two aging MacBook Pros are daily drivers that serve me well in various capacities. I hope these computers last several more years as primary devices.

I bought into the iPods but in recent years have become disappointed in them not because they were not great devices, but mainly on the fact that their built in batteries are almost impossible to replace. The batteries die and I can’t take advantage of all the portability they were intended for. Instead I still use the perfectly capable iPods plugged into their chargers and USB ports as semi-permanent audio players attached to external amplification systems.

The only iPod that still works as intended is my 2014 iPod Classic.

The iPod Touch that I bought in 2010 that I so loved is slowly giving up the ghost. The battery holds a charge for less than a couple of minutes before it completely dies. 32-bit apps are no longer supported by Apple and several apps that I have installed on the device do not fully function as their publishers have moved on and don’t support them. This mainly applies to apps that access the internet. Lastly I have noticed a light gray mark in the background of the iPod Touch’s screen indicating that it may soon die.

Truthfully as portable devices (phones) go, I have mostly migrated to Android because their devices are cheaper. The three phones (only one active with a carrier) I have feature easily replaceable batteries that no iOS device ever had.

That said, if I were getting or wanted an Apple computer or device, these are the 10 that I would consider but for various reasons did not get this year.

Apple iMac Pro: I amnot the biggest fan of all in one desktops, but this new professional iMac has specs which should wow most Apple and computer enthusiasts: 27 inch 5K 5120 X 2880 resolution Retina display, 8, 10, or 18 core processor options, 32 gigabytes configurable to 64 to 128GB, standard 1TB SSD storage, standard Radeon Pro Vega 56 graphics processor, 1080P Facetime HD camera, stereo speakers, four microphones, and connection options for SDXC memory card, USB 3, Thunderbolt 3/USB-C, 100GB ethernet and drumroll please…. 3.5 mm headphone jack! It has built-in 802.11ac WiFi as weall as Bluetooth 4.2 wireless technology. It also comes with a “space gray Magic keyboard with numeric keypad”, Magic Mouse 2, lightning to USB cable and Power cord. The operating system is Apple’s lates macOS High Sierra. What’s not to like? Alas the $5000+ iMac Pro is probably overkill for my uses and is most definitely very high priced.

iMac: Of course the iMac Pro is just way too expensive. My needs for a very powerful computer are not all that intensive, so as a compromise between a high end desktop or laptop, the standard, 27 inch iMac will probably do just fine. Apple upgraded the iMacs for 2017. They feature the same 27 inch, 5120 X 2880 resolution 5k Retina display as the prop model, and come with processor options of 3.4 GHz to 3.8 GHz. Memory starts at 8GB and can be ordered with 16, 32 or 64GB options. Storage is a standard “fusion drive”. I’d opt for at least a 512GB SSD. It’s got a decent graphics card, and comes with an HD Facetime camera, stereo speakers, built-in microphone and a 3.5mm audio output jack. Connections include SDXC memory card slot, 4 USB 3 ports and 2 Thunderbolt/USB-C ports plus a Gigabit ethernet port. WiFi and bluetooth are also standard along with a selection of keyboards and pointer options. Not bad with prices starting at $1799 and going up to $2299 for stock configurations. The iMac would be an ideal fit for the type of work that I do: Word processing, desktop and web publishing, audio creation and editing, photo editing, light video editing, database management, spreadsheets, archiving, file conversion, email, and general internet usage that include social media, audio and video streaming.

MacBook Pro: I’m not all that enthused about getting a new MacBook Pro. This is due to the issues I brought up last year. No ethernet port, no internal DVD drive, no on-board ethernet, no SD card slot, touch bar instead of function keys for higher end models. I’m sure they are very capable computers and will best my current MacBook Pros. Still I miss the connectivity and a way to easily rip a CDs and DVDs. Yes, DVD drives are not included with the iMacs either. I’d miss them if I had to travel and still needed to rip or burn a DVD or CD from outside my home. Humbug to carry an external drive around.

MacBook Air: Cute and affordable laptops. I’d get one if Chromebooks were not an option. Do I really need to run Mac apps on a laptop that I would probably only use for internet access and apps? I can do that much cheaper with a Chromebook. They have 2 USB 3 slots, analog output jack and surprise! An SDXC slot for photo memory cards. The price is reasonable at $999 for the low end model. You can get a good Chromebook for less than that and of course PC laptops have always been in this price area (or lower) too, but I would not recommend a Windows laptop.

iPad: I’m going to bunch all of the iPads into this one paragraph. At one time I wanted to get one, but never did. My life has for the most part been OK without a tablet computer. As with all things running Apple’s iOS operating system, the iPad at its various levels, are very capable devices if media consumption is your main focus of computing here. While users can create stuff with them, for heavy duty work, a regular computer is much more practical. I also don’t like the fact that the batteries are built in and not easily replaceable.

iPhones: The iPhones are beautiful, no doubt about it. But they are expensive. And frankly most people use them as pocket computers and cameras to take pictures, videos and access social media, text messaging, apps and games over making simple phone calls. Apple now features a wide range of iPhones at several price points, with low end models being holdovers from previous years. The most talked about iPhone is the iPhone X. The device which features an all touch interface with facial recognition technology, starts at a whopping $999 for the base model. A thousand dollars for a phone? I don’t think so! The lower end models start at around $399 on up. The iPhone 8 which along with the iPhone X was introduced this year, sells for $699 or $799 depending on screen size. You can buy 2 to 3 Chromebook computers for the price of an iPhone 8 or X. Pass.

iPod: As 2017 came to a close the world saw only one model with the iPod name offered by Apple. The one and only iPod model in the line-up is the Apple iPod Touch, which is the same model that was offered last year and the year before. It’s a great device to use for playing songs from your iTunes music library, surfing the internet, and streaming media content. The device is also good for taking photos and videos. I would consider buying one if it had a user friendly, replaceable battery. It is the Apple iOS device I wish I could like.

Apple TV: This is a nice device to stream your purchased video content, rent and buy movies through iTunes and watch streaming content on your HDTV through the internet. The device is affordable but I am not getting one anytime soon since I have no TV.

Other Macs: It is highly recommended that the current models of the Mac Pro and Mac Mini be avoided since their last refresh was at least 4 years ago. Apple is set to introduce new models in the line for 2018.

Apple Software and Services: My advice on these… get all of the free Apple operating system and application programs you can get. Best to keep up to date with the latest versions of macOS, iOS, iTunes and various other software titles. Apple makes some good stuff. Third party software developers also create good software and if you think something is great, by all means support the publishers and buy them. The subscription services offered by Apple are the ones that I have so far since their introduction, have avoided due to the monthly or annual costs. I am not a paid user of iCloud and don’t subscribe to Apple Music. There are other cloud storage and music options that have better pricing or are free to use.

And there we go. As 2017 closes out into 2018, these are the Apple products that for better or worst I totally skipped (again) and opted to hold on to tried and true or actually go in other directions (Hello Chromebook and Android).

I can’t remember the last time I used AOL Instant Messenger. Today in email I got the following notice:

Dear AIM user,

We see that you’ve used AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) in the past, so we wanted to let you know that AIM will be discontinued and will no longer work as of December 15, 2017.

Before December 15, you can continue to use the service. After December 15, you will no longer have access to AIM and your data will be deleted. If you use an @aim.com email address, your email account will not be affected and you will still be able to send and receive email as usual.

We’ve loved working on AIM for you. From setting the perfect away message to that familiar ring of an incoming chat, AIM will always have a special place in our hearts. As we move forward, all of us at AOL (now Oath) are excited to continue building the next generation of iconic brands and life-changing products for users around the world.

It is more than likely AOL Instant Messenger has long been eclipsed by other instant messenger applications such as Facebook Messenger, Apple Facetime and a slew of other text messaging things such as basic SMS on your cell phone. No big loss AOL. Your time has come and gone. People move on.

Europe, Russia and the United States are being hit by a new ransomware attack. Apparently, so far, only hitting Windows PCs. Got the following notice from Wordfence security:

This is a public service announcement from Wordfence. The following attack campaign is widespread and is having a global impact. We are sending this broadcast to our WordPress subscribers to ensure they are able to keep their Windows workstations secure.

The Petya Ransomware has gone global this morning and security analysts are scrambling to understand the full scope of the threat and to add detection capability to their products. A few minutes ago, we published a blog post which includes what we know so far and what you can do to protect yourself, along with a a video demonstration of the ransomware and additional information sources that are being updated in real-time as this attack campaign unfolds.

We also include the growing list of some of the companies and organizations that have already been affected by this attack campaign. We recommend you share this information to help the broader online community stay safe.

The bottom line is that we should all remain diligent in keeping our computer and mobile systems secure. Do not open attachments in email, download strange software or go to questionable websites. Keep back-ups of all your data and applications in a secure cloud server and non-network, external storage. Malware can impact across all platforms including MacOS, iOS, Android and Linux, though Windows users are usually the most targeted.

Photo by Insane Visions on Flickr

For the first time in years, the Macintosh has got me excited again. Apple’s latest iterations of the long running iMac may motivate me to finally buy a new computer sometime this year or next. The iMac has been sitting fairly dormant since its last update in late 2015.

Gotta love the specs of the new 2017 iMacs introduced at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 5. There are three distinct models: 21 inch iMac with standard LED backlit display; 21 inch iMac with 4K Retina display and the 27 inch iMac with 5K Retina display. Prices for the low end model start at $1099, $1299 for the 4K model and $1799 for the 5k 27 inch model. Custom configurations will certainly boost the price.

What I like about the iMacs is that they have a lot of ports for connecting a number of devices. This include standard 1/8 inch analog headphone jack, 4 USB 3 ports, 2 USB C “Thunderbolt 3” ports, gigabit ethernet port and SDXC card slot. Nice. The new iMacs now come with Intel’s 7th generation “Kaby Lake” processors which can run at speeds up to 4.5 ghz. They also get a “fusion drive” as standard equipment. SSD drives remain an option. The iMacs also have built-in wifi and bluetooth.

All of the new iMacs are available for sale now at the Apple Store and online site.

That all said, it is likely that when I buy a new Mac it probably will be an iMac. I have long been yearning for a desktop Mac after spending many years on my aging MacBook Pros and Chromebook. My ideal iMac will have an internal SSD drive, the maximum amount of RAM possible, retina display and perhaps a second display using one of those thunderbolt ports. I already have wired ethernet so that will be a nice hookup for the iMac.

Announced at the WWDC was a new high end iMac called the iMac Pro. Starting at $4999 retail, this new iMac is aimed at high end workstation, business, scientific and creative users. The new iMac Pro will be available in December 2017. It will be Apple’s flagship Mac for at least a year until a new Mac Pro desktop model is announced sometime in 2018.